Device for performing a cosmetic or medical procedure

Abstract

A device for performing a cosmetic or medical procedure and methods of operating such a device are usable for treating fibrous adhesions, such as those implicated in the formation of cosmetic or medical conditions including but not limited to cellulite. Embodiments of the disclosure have been particularly developed for targeting and disrupting fibrous adhesions to restore or improve normal physiological tissue function and/or aesthetic appearance. In at least one embodiment, the device comprises an elongate body and one or more user controllable breaking means. Each breaking means is actuatable to move between a retracted position in which the breaking means is in a collapsed configuration and an operative position in which the breaking means is in an expanded configuration suitable to break a strand of fibrous material or fibrous connective tissue.

The invention claimed is: 
     
         1 . A device for performing a cosmetic or medical procedure, comprising:
 a hollow elongate body having a body wall with at least one opening, wherein the at least one opening is proximal from a distal end of the hollow elongate body; and   one or more user controllable breaking means that are positioned within the hollow elongate body,   wherein each breaking means comprises (a) at least one breaking element made of a non-cutting wire comprising a shape-memory alloy, and (b) a distal end portion,   wherein the at least one breaking element is actuatable to move the wire between a retracted position and an operative position,   wherein when in the retracted position, the wire is housed within the hollow elongate body in a collapsed configuration and when in the operative position, the wire projects outwardly through the at least one opening in the body wall in an expanded configuration suitable to break a strand of fibrous material while the distal end portion of the breaking means remains housed within the hollow elongate body,   wherein the wire is biased towards the expanded configuration and is placed under tension within the hollow elongate body when in the collapsed configuration, and   wherein the wire is configured to break a strand of fibrous connective tissue by tensioning or stretching the strand away from the hollow elongate body until complete or partial rupture of the strand, the wire having strength in the expanded configuration to break the strand of fibrous connective tissue by tensioning the strand to and/or past a point of rupture.   
     
     
         2 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the breaking means is slidable within the hollow elongate body such that the breaking means slides within the hollow elongate body when moving the wire from the retracted position into the operative position. 
     
     
         3 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the hollow elongate body comprises a sliding member slidingly movable within the hollow elongate body and wherein the breaking means is attached to the sliding member. 
     
     
         4 . The device according to  claim 3 , wherein the hollow elongate body and/or the sliding member is configured such as to restrict rotation of the breaking means relative to the hollow elongate body when the wire is in the expanded configuration. 
     
     
         5 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the wire, in the expanded configuration, assumes the shape of a hoop, a half-hoop, an oval, an ellipse, a diamond, a rectangle, or a square or assumes a leaf-like shape. 
     
     
         6 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the wire expands along one plane when transitioning from the collapsed configuration to the expanded configuration. 
     
     
         7 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the wire is movable in discrete increments between the retracted position and the operative position such that expansion of the wire into the expanded configuration occurs in corresponding increments. 
     
     
         8 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the device comprises a plurality of the breaking elements. 
     
     
         9 . The device according to  claim 1 , wherein the cosmetic or medical procedure is a treatment of fibrous adhesions associated with medical or cosmetic skin conditions, including cellulite, wrinkles, acne, burns or depressed skin-grafts; surgical treatment; trauma; scarring; pregnancy; and/or nerve or blood vessel compression, including carpal tunnel syndrome or compartment syndrome. 
     
     
         10 . A method of operating a device comprising a hollow elongate body having a proximal end, a distal end, a body wall with at least one opening that is proximal from the distal end, and one or more breaking means retained under tension in a retracted position within the hollow elongate body, wherein the breaking means comprises (a) at least one breaking element made of a non-cutting wire comprising a shape-memory alloy, and (b) a distal end portion, and the wire is biased towards an expanded configuration and configured to break a strand of fibrous material by tensioning or stretching the strand away from the hollow elongate body until complete or partial rupture of the strand, the wire having strength in the expanded configuration to break the strand of fibrous material by tensioning the strand to and/or past a point of rupture, the method comprising:
 positioning the hollow elongate body to provide the breaking means at a target location; and   actuating the breaking means to move the wire from a retracted position to an operative position in which the wire projects outwardly through the at least one opening in the body wall in the expanded configuration while the distal end portion of the breaking means remains housed within the hollow elongate body, and   wherein, when moving from the retracted position to the operative position, the wire transitions from a collapsed configuration to the expanded configuration having a strength suitable to break the strand of fibrous material.   
     
     
         11 . The method according to  claim 10 , further comprising performing a cosmetic or medical procedure using the device, the one or more breaking means being user controllable, wherein the at least one breaking element is actuatable to move the wire between the retracted position and the operative position, and wherein when in the retracted position, the wire is in the collapsed configuration, and when in the operative position, the wire is in the expanded configuration suitable to break the strand of fibrous connective tissue. 
     
     
         12 . A method of operating a device comprising a hollow elongate body having a proximal end, a distal end, a body wall with at least one opening that is proximal from the distal end, and a breaking means retained in a retracted position under tension within the hollow elongate body, wherein the breaking means comprises (a) at least one breaking element made of a non-cutting wire comprising a shape-memory alloy, and (b) a distal end portion, and the wire is biased towards an expanded configuration and configured to break a strand of fibrous material by tensioning or stretching the strand away from the hollow elongate body until complete or partial rupture of the strand, the wire having strength in the expanded configuration to break the strand of fibrous material by tensioning the strand to and/or past a point of rupture, the method including:
 creating an entry point puncture in a patient;   inserting the breaking means with the wire in the retracted position through the entry point puncture and maneuvering the breaking means with the wire in the retracted position through tissue of the patient to a target location having a strand of fibrous connective tissue, wherein in the retracted position the wire is in a collapsed configuration;   actuating the breaking means to transition the wire into an operative position in which the wire projects outwardly through the at least one opening in the body wall in the expanded configuration while the distal end portion of the breaking means remains housed within the hollow elongate body;   manipulating the device such as to break the strand of fibrous connective tissue using the breaking means to push the strand of fibrous connective tissue away from the hollow elongate body until complete or partial rupture of the strand; and   actuating the breaking means to transition the wire into the retracted position.